Simon Cowell Lost Voice During ‘America’s Got Talent’ — See What He Used Instead (VIDEO)

Isaac Rouse June 28, 2023, 11:41 am

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America’s Got Talent judge Simon Cowell has suffered a vocal cord injury, with his voice hoarse and strained during Season 18. In the fifth week of auditions, he lost his voice, which rendered him unable to speak. However, host Terry Crews offered a solution.

“Being the great person that I am, I got a gift for him,” the Everybody Hates Chris actor told the audience during the June 27 episode. “I have a special soundboard that has been loaded up with thousands of comments — a lot of things he’s said over the years — so we’ll be able to hear Simon Cowell.”

He was able to use a soundboard with all his classic catchphrases and snapback all assembled. Cowell’s antics with the soundboard offered plenty of laughs among fellow judges Sofía Vergara, Heidi Klum, and especially Howie Mandel, whom Cowell told to shut up a couple of times before he even had a chance to say anything. Check out the moment in the video below.

If you’re not watching @AGT,
1. go turn on NBC right now
2. Simon got a soundboard pic.twitter.com/3fzT15PIbJ

— Howie Mandel (@howiemandel) June 28, 2023

“I think what happened was the acid from my stomach literally burned my vocal cords,” Cowell told USA Today in late May. “So, this doctor came over and put a camera up my nose, down my throat and I could actually see how badly burnt they were.”

The record executive was put on vocal rest following his visit with the doctor.

'America's Got Talent': Murmuration Mesmerizes Sofia Vergara in Sneek Peak

“It was torture. There was so much I wanted to say, and I literally could not talk,” Cowell continued. “We tried writing things. At one point, I used this kind of iPad device where I had things I’d said before. I tried to use Sofía to translate for me, and she deliberately said the wrong things, so it was just chaos.”

Mandel slammed the Golden Buzzer on June 20 of AGT after a stunning performance from the blindfolded dance group Murmuration left him “mesmerized.” Before that, Crews also pushed the Golden Buzzer for Chioma & The Atlanta Drum Academy, sending them directly to the AGT live shows. And although no Golden Buzzers were hit on the June 27 episode, 10 acts were able to make it to the next round.

America’s Got Talent, Tuesdays, 8/7c, NBC